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Women win Big Ten opener

January 2, 2011

Head coach Suzy Merchant questions an official’s call Sunday afternoon at Breslin Center. The Spartans defeated Illinois 70-57. Matt Hallowell/The State News

Photo by Matt Hallowell | The State News

The No. 12 MSU women’s basketball team is off to its best start in school history thanks to a 70-57 win against Illinois on Sunday.

The Spartans (13-1 overall, 1-0 Big Ten) were led by senior forward Kalisha Keane, who scored 27 points in the team’s Big Ten opener at Breslin Center. Keane went 10 for 14 from the field, including 3 of 6 from beyond the arc.

The game is Keane’s sixth 20-point game of the season.

“I’ve never coached a player with that high of a basketball IQ who is a forward,” head coach Suzy Merchant said in the post game press conference. “She just has a knack and a feel for the game. She makes other people around her better, she can get shots off, and she is good defensively in terms of getting in the lane.”

Junior forward Lykendra Johnson helped the Spartan cause with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

MSU’s previous best start was 12-2, in both the 1973-74 and 2004-05 seasons.

The Spartans will look to extend their 11-game winning streak against Wisconsin 7 p.m. Thursday at Breslin Center.

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